Medical consultants offer specialized advice to businesses providing healthcare services or otherwise affiliated with the medical industry. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, job opportunities for management, scientific and technical consultants will grow by 83 percent by 2018. Employers expect consultants to provide a range of advisory services, from identifying and resolving problems to analyzing and forecasting industry trends. Consultants with several years of experience will have the best job prospects as will those with a science, medical or healthcare background.

Primary Responsibilities

Medical consultants address business-related issues for medical facilities and healthcare providers so they can prioritize providing care. They gather and analyze data, draw conclusions and present findings in the form of recommendations to their clients. For example, they may offer salary, staffing, budgeting and advertising suggestions. Some medical consultants offer advice for standardizing the delivery of care. Medical consultants can also help a doctor or healthcare facility with a range of regulatory issues, such as complying with insurance and safety plans, keeping patient information confidential and disposing of hazardous waste. They can even suggest ways that a client can lower exposure to malpractice lawsuits or address such lawsuits when they come up.

Secondary Responsibilities

Some consultants interview potential customers or clients in order to gather information. For example, to find out how well a doctor is doing, some medical consultants may interview patients about the care they received. Using these responses, a medical consultant could recommend ways the doctor can increase patient satisfaction. Medical consultants may develop project plans and strategies in line with a client’s business needs. Consultants who work with healthcare or medical company start-ups, for example, can suggest how to effectively start a business. Medical consultants may also help clients identify and resolve potential problems, such as in workflow or company processes and also offer advice for optimizing hospital, health center or medical-center facility performance.

Education and Experience

Medical consultants, as independent contractors, can provide services directly to a doctor or healthcare facility. They can also work for a company that provides medical-consulting services. Clients or consulting firms will both consider a consultant's education and experience when deciding to extend a job offer. Consultants should have at least a bachelor’s degree, such as in business, finance, science, engineering or healthcare. A consultant’s previous experience and track record, though, will likely matter more. Consultants with between one and five years of specific experience at a consulting firm or in the healthcare industry will likely fare better when looking for jobs. Though licensure and certification is not a requirement to work as a consultant, some employers may prefer candidates who have one or both, such as someone who is licensed as a registered nurse.

Skills

Successful consultants have strong communication skills and are able to identify and resolve problems -- often before they occur. They should have strong research skills and understand and know how to apply industry-specific regulations and guidelines. They should be able to work well on their own as well as with a team and know how to conduct and interpret quantitative and qualitative analyses. Consultants should also be familiar with common word-processing and spreadsheet programs, like Microsoft Word and Excel, and with presentation programs, such as PowerPoint.

About the Author

William Henderson has been writing for newspapers, magazines and journals for more than 15 years. He served as editor of the "New England Blade" and is a former contributor to "The Advocate." His work has also appeared on The Good Men Project, Life By Me and The Huffington Post.